Madison football pulls away from Sand Creek

The Madison High School football team used a late score to pull away from Sand Creek on Friday night and gave the homecoming crowd, who stuck around through a lightening delay, a reason to cheer.

The 41-24 win gave Madison its first Tri-County Conference victory and evened its record at 3-3 overall, keeping its playoff hopes alive. Sand Creek fell to 0-6 (0-4 TCC).

The game started well for the Aggies when Trenden Peacock hit Nick Cleveland on a 30-yard strike halfway through the first quarter, giving Sand Creek its only lead of the night. However, the Trojans wasted little time finding the end zone themselves when on their very next drive, quarterback Nolan Anschuetz use his feet to scamper 12 yards into the end zone. Tony Trumbull's foot broke the tie as the extra point sailed through the uprights, giving Madison a lead it wouldn't give up, 7-6.

"Nolan is a great kid," said Madison coach Taz Wallace. "He's a perfectionist, and he came out with a chip on his shoulder tonight."

The first quarter touchdown by the Trojans was a kickstart to a 20-point outburst in the second quarter. Not more than a minute into the quarter, Anschuetz rammed his way into the end zone again. It was the second of six touchdowns for which Anschuetz was responsible. An equal opportunist, he ran and threw for three touchdowns each.

However, the Aggies had a weapon of their own: junior running back Charlie Robertson. Robertson quickly closed the scoring gap when he powered, cut and raced his way to pay dirt on a 71-yard run two plays into the Aggies' drive.

"Charlie learned to work hard in the off season, and now he sees the dividends of that hard work," said Sand Creek coach Ernie Ayers. "He always plays with passion and always gives his best effort whether it's a game or in practice."

The back-and-forth game went back to Madison on its next drive. After driving down the field, Anschuetz flipped the ball out to Colby Weitenhagen on a swing pass that Weitenhagen took for 20 yards and a touchdown. The Aggies gave the ball right back to Madison when Zejuan Hubbard picked the ball off near midfield and returned it inside the 10-yard line. A couple plays later, Anschuetz hit Kris Paul on a 9-yard skinny post, pushing the Trojan lead to nine.

Madison wasnt yet finished before the halftime homecoming festivities took place. After taking over on downs in their own territory, Anschuetz threw his third touchdown in 10 minutes when he hit Zach Fisher in stride down the Madison sideline for a 46-yard score, giving the Trojans a 27-12 halftime lead.

Just as the third quarter began, mother nature decided to extend the game. A lightening delay sent the teams off the field for 30 minutes, and when play resumed, it was the Aggies who seized momentum.

"We were concerned about the delay," said Ayers. "It didn't seem to bother us, but we just don't do enough of the little things right on a regular basis."

On their first two drives after the delay, Sand Creek came out in a Wildcat formation, snapping the ball directly to Robertson. It turned out to be a good move, as Robertson took off on runs of 55 and 46, scoring touchdowns on both, and the comfortable lead that Madison had turned into a three-point margin.

"We constantly talk about adjusting to situations with poise," said Wallace. "We talk about responding to adversity, and wanted to make our season into one week seasons from here on out, and this week we responded well."

The Trojans took control in the fourth quarter, putting up 14 points on Anschuetz and Hubbard runs, once again extending the three-point margin into a comfortable 17-point lead.

Anschuetz had a great night for Madison, passing for 161 yards and running for 124.Leading the Aggies was Robertson's 276 yards rushing on 28 carries. He also led his team on defense with 11 tackles.